I hate waiting - especially in a Doctor’s office. Where else in the real world would a professional get away with not holding up an appointment? I had an appointment this morning at 8:45 and waited for at least 20 minutes before going back to sit in another room for 10 more minutes. I finally walked out of this particular chiropractor’s office an hour and 15 minutes later. Completely unacceptable.

Why do we put up with this? Maybe I should send them a bill for my waiting time.

A man that touched my life, in many ways, passed away yesterday - Jerry Reed. He was 71 and died from complications with emphysema.

I first met Jerry when I was about five or six years old in Baton Rouge. You see, my Dad was a HUGE Jerry Reed fan and we were always listening to his albums when I was a kid, so I really knew his music. Dad also did some concert promoting on the side and would bring a few of his heroes into town for shows every once in a while. And, this led to me getting to meet Jerry for the first time. He and Dad kept up over the years off and on and I was able to meet him again a few times more. More on that in a sec.

Most people don’t have any idea how influential a guitar player Jerry was. Ask any guitar player in Nashville and he’ll be on their top 3 list. He built a style of his own based on the finger picking techniques of Merle Travis and Chet Atkins combined with banjo techniques from Earl Scruggs. He was also a great songwriter with numerous hits for both himself and others. It’s not too shabby of a career when Elvis records two of your songs!

Then we get to his movie career - where most people knew Jerry. His breakthrough role came opposite of Burt Reynolds in “Gator”. He was great in that movie - catch it if you haven’t seen it. And from there the world came to know “The Snowman” in “Smokey and the Bandit” for which he won a People’s Choice Award for his role. He made several movies over the years after and ended up in Adam Sandler’s “Waterboy” in the mid-90’s and was great opposite of Fonzie.

On a personal note I got to spend a little bit of time with Jerry when the last album that he and Chet Atkins came out called “Sneakin’ Around.” My Dad and I went to see him in Iowa at a show and ended up having dinner with he and his wife, Prissy, after the show. But it was on the bus that afternoon that I was fortunate to be part of something that Jerry didn’t do that often. He handed me his famous Baldwin guitar and asked me to play him something. I can’t remember what I played, but he corrected me on a few things and then gave me a lesson and some pointers. His wife later told me that she had never seen him give a guitar lesson before. So, I was pretty excited to learn from a master.

I got to tend his guitar a few more times, once at a show for the Chet Atkins Appreciation Society in Nashville. I even wrote an instrumental on that guitar - something I still play today.

I still listen to his music and wish that all of his catalog would resurface. You can find a few albums here and there. My favorite was a live album he recorded here in Nashville at the Exit/In. There’s a song on there called “I’m You Guitar” that is a masterpiece and then leads into a killer version of “Guitar Man.”

My hope is that he’ll one day make it into the Country Music Hall of Fame where he belongs. The things he’s done on stage, on screen, in the studio and in the writing room all add up to an amazing career as an entertainer. I remember seeing something a few years back that called him “The Entertainer” - very fitting.

Here’s the link to his obituary at Tennessean.com: Musician, actor Jerry Reed dies at 71

Here are all of the games I watched last night:

• Tennessee Titans vs. Packers
  • Let’s see the 1st team offense didn’t score a touchdown all preseason. I’m just a little bit worried.
• Vanderbilt vs. Miami of Ohio
  • Great to see Vandy off to a good start. They looked good and we’re exciting to watch. I think all of the fans in Franklin were @ Jonathan’s in Cool Springs last night for the game. Big shout out for “The Sink” pizza @ Jonathan’s.
• S. Carolina vs. NC State
  • The “Ole Ball Coach” looked a little nervous in the 1st half - good thing they settled down. The Gamecocks looked pretty good - that’ll be a tough game for LSU this year.
• Oregon State vs. Stanford
  • So much for Pac-10 football. They couldn’t even fill the stadium for a home opener against a conference opponent.

Like the morning guys said this morning on 104.5 The Zone - “say good-bye to your weekends”. It’s football time, baby!

P.S. - if you haven’t, revisit this post from this time last year: Top 10 Reasons You Know It’s Football Time In…

I heard this one on a conference call today. I’ve never heard this one, but it’s going into my bag o’ tricks.

munge
1. A derogatory term meaning to imperfectly transform information.
2. A comprehensive rewrite of a routine, data structure or the whole program.

I can’t remember when I have been so excited for a college football season to begin. In about eight hours - GAME ON!

Now I just have another 2 days before my Tigers play. Go Vandy!

Man, my 11 year-old step-son really made me feel old this morning. Here’s the story…

We’ve been playing the new Guitar Hero: Aerosmith game lately. However, before I let him get the game I made him listen to some of my Aerosmith CD’s so he’d have an appreciation of the music before getting into the game. He’s really enjoyed their stuff and has been asking a ton of questions about the band and different songs. So, I’m out washing my car on Thursday and fired up the old boom-box I keep in there to listen to when I’m working in the garage. And, I look up and there’s an old cassette of Aerosmith: Classics Live.

Great album, by the way.

So, this morning I told Tommy I found something for him and went and got the cassette. I handed it to him and then I got this:

“How am I supposed to watch this tape?”

Are you freakin’ kidding me? Has it been that long since cassettes were around? Surely this kid has seen a cassette tape - much less heard music from one?

Needless to say, I’m feeling really old this morning. I need another cup of coffee. But, I will tell you this Aerosmith’s version of “Mama Kin” on Classics: Live rocks!